Catholic Public Domain Version
"And those greater by birth of that city, nearest to the one who was slain, shall go and shall wash their hands over the calf that was killed in the valley. "
— Deuteronomy 21:6, Catholic Public Domain Version
“And all the elders of that city, that are next unto the slain man, shall wash their hands over the heifer that is beheaded in the valley:”
“And all the elders of that city, who are nearest unto the slain man, shall wash their hands over the heifer whose neck was broken in the valley; ”
“All the elders of that city, who are nearest to the slain man, shall wash their hands over the heifer whose neck was broken in the valley;”
“and all the elders of that city nearest the corpse must wash their hands over the heifer whose neck was broken in the valley.”
“And the ancients of that city shall come to the person slain, and shall wash their hands over the heifer that was killed in the valley,”
“And all the responsible men of that town which is nearest to the dead man, washing their hands over the cow whose neck was broken in the valley,”
“And all the elders of that city, that are next unto the slain man, shall wash their hands over the heifer that is beheaded in the valley:”
And in whichever one they perceive to be closer than the others, the elders shall take a calf from the herd, one which has not pulled with a yoke, nor tilled with a plow.
And they shall lead it into a rough and stony valley, one which has never been tilled or sown. And in that place, they shall cut the neck of the calf.
And the priests the sons of Levi shall approach, those whom the Lord your God has chosen to minister to him, and to bless in his name, and to decide every controversy by their word, and to judge which things are clean and which are unclean.
And those greater by birth of that city, nearest to the one who was slain, shall go and shall wash their hands over the calf that was killed in the valley.
And they shall say: ‘Our hands did not shed this blood, nor did our eyes see it.
Be merciful to your people Israel, whom you have redeemed, O Lord, and do not charge them with innocent blood in the midst of your people Israel.’ And so the guilt of the blood will be taken away from them.
Then you will be free from the blood that was shed against the innocent, when you will have done as the Lord has instructed you.